Video: TV Anchor Goes on the Offensive Against a Viewer Who Criticized Her Weight

In an incident that has received wide attention on the Internet, Jennifer Livingston, a morning anchor on CBS affiliate WKBT-TV in Lacrosse, Wis., responded on air to a viewer who criticized her for being overweight, The New York Times reports.

“Ms. Livingston’s response, which has gone viral on the Internet with almost 2 million views on YouTube alone, said she had initially dismissed the criticism but then decided to speak up to raise awareness about bullying behavior,” the story reports.

Livingston, 37, says in part in her response: “The truth is I am overweight. You could call me fat and yes, even obese on a doctor’s chart. But to the person who wrote me that letter, do you think I don’t know that? That your cruel words are pointing out something that I don’t see?”

She goes on to deliver an impassioned argument against bullying and hurtful verbal attacks and in support of sensitivity toward people’s differences. Here’s her response: